Too Fragile to Touch
by CREATIONSTATION
Summary: "Annabeth." She murmured. When she spoke, it sounded like she hadn't spoken in weeks. "Annabeth Chase." Ms. Dodds looked pleased, and dropped her back down in her chair. He continued to watch her, as she furiously fixed her hair, so it landed atop her eye. She's hiding something...
1. Chapter 1

**Hi. New account. My stories might be a little depressing so if you're into that kind of stuff, knock yourself out. Thanks, and don't beat me up. I have a tendency to not update for long periods of time. My other account is It'sCalledAFandom so if you want to check those out, be my guest. Everybody's got a dark side huh?**

When he saw her, his heart stopped. It wasn't like a drop dead, beauty effect, but something else. Annabeth Chase, who's face was decorated with bruises, and who's long sleeves draped majestically around her hands. Who's gaze was always pointed down towards her shoes. And Perseus Jackson hadn't cared until he saw her.

She was the one who transferred to Goode High School. In homeroom, she sat in the very back corner of the classroom, her hood shrouding her honey curls. He preferred the window, so his mind could explore, but the only thing it saw that day was her. She was hunched over a thick book, her hair falling down almost perfectly, and her jacket hood concealed them. Her right eye was covered by the the thick spirals. His first initial thought was_ Emo_. Her eyes shot up, as if she could hear his mind working, but then fell back down. He had caught a glimpse of them though, startling grey, like the begining of a storm.

The bell rang and he shuffled around in his desk, gathering his stuff for first period, but he couldn't exactly peel his eyes off her. That theory was proven by his slamming into the next desk and dropping all his stuff. He could've sworn he heard a giggle, but as he looked up, bewildered, there was no one there.

In the halls, she was vulnerable. He watched as Clarisse La Rue slammed her into a locker, papers flying everywhere. She laughed at the poor helpless girl, fumbling around for her belongings. If that wasn't bad enough, Clarisse stomped her large foot on her hand, twisting her fingers beneath the heel. She bit her lip, and yanked her arm away. He watched from a distance, not sure what to do, as Clarisse sombered off. Her head turned quickly, and he was sure he saw a dark blackish purple bruise plastered across her eye. Her hair fell back into place, and he realized that the halls began to empty, and they'd both be late for class. He glanced down at his watch, peaking out from beneath his hoodie, and looked back up, but she had vanished. He jumped, and started off to his class.

It wasn't until third period, that he saw her again. She sat in the back again, shying away from anyone. Ms. Dodds, a sweet old woman with a tight face, taught his history class this year. She waltzed to the back, where she was sitting, and pulled the girl up, who yelped in surprise.

"This," She started, "Is our new student." She looked at the girl, obviously extremely uncomfortable. "Please introduce yourself." She commanded. Her eyes became wide, and she looked nervously at the rest of the class. Her eyes met his, and she looked down abruptly.

"Annabeth." She murmured. When she spoke, it sounded like she hadn't spoken in weeks. "Annabeth Chase." Ms. Dodds looked pleased, and dropped her back down in her chair. He continued to watch her, as she furiously fixed her hair, so it landed atop her eye. She's hiding something...

She didn't speak for the rest of the day, or at least in any of his classes. When the final bell rang, she darted through the large crowds, in an attempt to reach her locker, which was located close to his. She threw open her locker, stuffing various textbooks and binders in. A spiral notebook was tossed a little too carelessly, and landed next to his feet, open. She stifled a gasp, as he bent down to pick it up for her. His eyes darted across the page, which showed gruesome images. He quickly shut the book, with no intention to pry, and held it out to her. She eyed him cautiously, like she was expecting for him to hurt her. He pushed the book out further, and this time, she took it, shoving it quickly in her frayed backpack. Then she slung it over her shoulder and scampered off into the crowds.

He couldn't stop thinking about her. When he walked through his apartment door, his step-father, Gabe Ugliano, stood leaning against the sofa, holding a beer can.

"Where's Mom?" He demanded. Gabe rolled his eyes.

"She working again, putting in the extra hours." He sneered. His insides sparked.

"She wouldn't have to, if you'd actually quit gambling all our money away." He snarled. Gabe jumped forward, arm raised, which made him shrink back. He saw what Gabe could do to his mother. The man chuckled.

"That's what I thought." Gabe smirked. Then he made a distinct hand motion, one that's used to send him to his room. One that was used ever since his mother married that bastard. His heart sank into his chest. Sure, he had it rough, but there were nice times. Never involving Gabe. For some reason, his mind darted back to Annabeth Chase, the new girl who was a mystery. Her blond hair made her look so mystical and angelic, but he knew she was broken, and he would find out for sure.

**What did you guys think? First chapter and all? Please let me know. **


	2. Chapter 2

**First chappie was good! Here comes another!**

The next day at school, he was going to talk to her. At his locker, he speedily shoved his messy textbooks in his locker among the various papers that he didn't feel like organizing. In the corner of his eye, a flash of blond surfaced. He knew it was her, two lockers away, but he didn't want to stare. But he couldn't help it. Today, she wore the same grey hoodie, with dark jeans that displayed her tiny legs that looked like he could snap them if he tried. She pushed her hair slightly out of her face, and brushed her hands over the bright post-it notes slapped onto her locker. They showed rude messages, such as "Freak", "Bitch", and "Know it all". He cringed with anger, but if she had any emotion towards them, she didn't show it. She unzipped her bag, and tossed the books in her locker. She then carefully pulled out the same spiral notebook, and tucked it under her long draping sleeves, shutting her locker, and walked to first period. She obviously knew he was following her, but she avioded him. His heart pounded as he walked behind her. She was beautiful, in an innocent kind of way that made him nervous. He was positive she had a bruise on her face. Suddenly, he slammed into the door, papers flying everywhere. She turned around, and stared at him, his eyes locking with her one that was revealed. He felt his face turning red, and she became equally flushed. Thankfully, his best friend Grover clapped him on the shoulder.

"Geez!" Doors are for walking through, not into!" He grinned. Grover leaned on his crutches, hunched over. The frazzled boy looked behind him, but the girl had vanished again. He laughed awkwardly, rubbing his neck with his calloused hands. He was secretly disappointed that he let her get away, but at the same time, he was thankful. Truth was, he was terrified to talk to her. Grover tapped his his foot with his crutch, and pointed to where Juniper was standing, talking with Rachel Dare and Reyna, the new transfer from San Francisco. He sighed. "She dyed the tips of her hair green this weekend."

"Since when did you notice girly things?" Grover looked at him shyly and began to stutter. It was obvious. Grover had a huge crush on this girl. He didn't even know her very well. After seeing Grover's reaction, he decided to drop the subject. They both took their seats and the class started. The Latin teacher wheeled towards the front of the room, purposely rolling his wheelchair over bad student's feet. This was his favorite teacher, Mr Brunner. He would exclaim various myths while wielding a battle axe, or a shield with a mythological monster on it. Once Mr Brunner reached the front of the room, the black haired boy couldn't keep his excitement in.

"Mr Brunner are we reading a myth today?" He asked eagerly. The older man looked at him, his coffee brown eyes boring into his sea green ones.

"Unfortunately no Percy," He sighed. "Today you have to take a quiz about Mythological gods and goddesses. The student groaned.

"Does spelling count?" He asked. Mr Brunner sighed again. He seemed sadder than usual.

"Yes, spelling counts." A piece of paper was placed on his desk, filled up completely with pictures and fill-ins. His heart raced. There was a picture of a woman with an owl on her shoulder. I know her. He thought excitedly. Athena. His eyes shifted over. Roman form? Crap I don't know it. He sat looking at the paper, completely empty except the messy answer he knew. He did everything to pass the time, tapping his pencil, folding the edge of the paper, even drawing mustaches on the gods and goddesses. Finally, after what seemed an eternity, the bell rang. There was a lot of shuffling and conversations started to pick up. The boy slowly rose from his desk, and handed the paper to his teacher, and walked out of the room before Mr Brunner could say anything. Once his feet were out of the room, he began to pick up his pace, running slightly. After Latin, he had lunch and he wanted to get there quickly, or else the line would stretch. He was pretty sure today's lunch was enchiladas and Grover would be going nuts waiting for him. Suddenly his thoughts were interrupted by a force slamming into him. Both bodies were thrown off course and fell to the ground. He looked over, expecting to see a teacher, who was going to yell at him for running in the halls. Instead he looked down to see the little blond girl with her papers scattered everywhere on the ground. He was shocked.

"I am so sorry!" He sputtered and jumped up. She didn't look up at him, but furiously collected her papers. He bent down to help her but she had shoved them all in a stack. So instead he held his hand out to help her. She looked up at him and it was like the world around them stopped. There was fear in her wide grey eyes. His face went red, and he looked down at the floor, slowly dropping his hand down. Suddenly she had taken his hand, and he pulled her up, now his turn to be shocked. She looked down again, and he adverted his gaze as well. She turned and began to walk the opposite way but he called out. "Do you know where the lunchroom is?" She shook her head, now looking back at him. He saw an opening. "I can show you where it is." She shook her head again.

"I'm not hungry." She said. When she spoke, her lips barely moved. They were cracked and dry. He looked at her closely, but she turned quickly and jogged down the hallway. Not hungry? Or not eating?


	3. Chapter 3

**Yay Update!**

He was startled in gym class, when he saw her for the first time in shorts and a t-shirt. It was about four months into the school year, and she barely showed up to the class. She wore her jacket, but had the uniform gym shorts on, blue with white words at the hem. He imagined she was wearing a child's size pair, and her skinny little legs looked like they'd snap when she'd take a step. He was a decent athlete, and was able to keep a soccer ball in her possession. Unless Clarisse was there. She'd basically maul the little girl, leaving her flat on the ground. She took it well, until she was elbowed hard in the face. She stopped for a minute, while Clarisse took off with the ball. A flash of blood erupted from her nose and down her arm from where she'd covered it. She looked frightened for a moment. No one seemed to realize she was injured, except for him. He debated whether or not to go over and help her. He made up his mind, and jogged over to her.

"Are you alright?" He asked, his heart racing. She nodded quickly, holding her hands to her face. As she nodded, blood seeped down her arm and into her sweatshirt sleeves. "I can take you to the nurse's office." She shook her head vigorously. He frowned. "Are you sure? You look really hurt." She looked at him, hesitated for a second. Grey eyes landed on sea green and she nodded slowly. He cautiously placed his arm on hers and looked for any reaction, but she must have been too preoccupied with her nose. He lead her to the door and into the main hallway. From there, the nurse's office was just down the hall. His heart was leaping nervously. It was the first time he'd even seen someone touch her and she was fine with it. He focused on the steady stream of blood turning her gray sweatshirt sleeve into a marbled maroon mess. She needed to take it off or else it'd be ruined. Soon they were at the nurse's office, which was a little door next to the restrooms. He let go of her and knocked on the door. He heard a little bit of shuffling on the other side of the door and it opened abruptly, showing off the little school nurse. She was small and stout with a pinched little smile, which quickly disappeared as she saw all the blood pouring out of one little girl's face.

"Nosebleed." She whispered, suddenly turning sour. She ushered Annabeth in and handed her a box of tissues, which she balled up and pressed to her nose. He stood awkwardly in the doorway not sure what to do. He could stay and help, or he could go back to gym class. Though there wasn't much to help with. Tissue by tissue, the blood depleted as the nurse speedily cleaned her up. The nurse began to tug on her sweatshirt sleeve but the small girl yelped, and held on to the arm hole tightly.

"I get cold." She stuttered. The poor girl was shaking. The nurse shrugged and instead, started blotting out the blood with a wet paper towel. Soon enough, there was almost no sign of blood. Annabeth thanked the nurse, and stood up shakily. When she saw him in the door way, she frowned. The look on her face read; Why didn't you leave? Instead of saying it though, she blushed and brushed past him.

"Wait!" He called. "Do you know where you're going?" She looked back abruptly at him, but for the most part, she kept walking back towards the gym. Then she tooks a short turn and headed towards the outside doors. Confused, he sprinted up ahead to see where she was going. He was standing at an intersecting point in the hallway, and he saw the doors open, but Annabeth Chase was gone.

**What do you guys think? Reviews are always appreciated! **


	4. Chapter 4

**New update ayeeeee**

He wanted to go after her, knowing she was outside and there was nowhere to escape out the courtyard. She was probably sitting under the large oak tree in the very corner of the flat area. He wanted to go out and comfort her. But he barely knew her at all. He stood in the hallway, dazed and confused. What was this sudden emotion? He wanted to hug her and hold her tightly because he knew something bad was going on in her life. He shook his head. What was he thinking? Helping her must have fueled something in him. He forced himself to dismiss the thoughts and walk back into the gym class.

Annabeth breathed a sigh of relief. Her insides churned. What was she feeling? It was jittery, like when she was little and she had soda for the first time. It made her insides pop and feel fiery. But there was no soda. It was only him. She didn't even know his name! She had jogged to the edge of the courtyard, where a tall fence held the students in. Annabeth didn't hesitate. She placed her hands on the very top of the fence and hoisted herself up, then pushed herself over, dropping about five feet. Once she was over the gate, her feet lead her in one direction. She knew exactly where she was going, but her heart and soul ached when she was there. Yet she kept going back. Her feet dragged on the sidewalk. She walked away until the school was out of her vision and the nice rich neighborhood had turned to a sour, shabby place. She cut through a few side streets and his house came into view. His house was beat up, white with a terrible paint job. Sure enough, Luke Castellian was sitting on the front porch, holding a cigarette to his mouth. As soon as he saw her, his face lit up like the end of his light.

"Annabeth!" He said smugly. "You haven't visited in weeks."

"Yeah well school sucks." She took a seat next to him. "And Helen's making me go." Luke sighed and held out a light, which she took. Then he handed her the lighter. She never had cigarettes unless she was with Luke. She lit the cig and touched it to her lips, but never inhaling. She hesitated. He placed his hand on hers, and she felt her face flush.

"Life sucks." He said, summing everything up. She nodded in agreement, and leaned back into Luke's frame. She felt his hands go around her and she let out a sigh of relief. Then she took a deep inhale of her cigarette. He shifted a little underneath her to take in his own, and they blew out puffs of smoke together.

"Yeah it does."

**It's short but it's good. Short but sweet.**


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